Unspoken
by Lynnlee22
Summary: Joey and Aubrey are getting married. Kelly and Kevin attend and bring quite the gift.
1. Chapter 1

"You know you have to go."

Kelly looked up, narrowing her eyes at him. "I do not," she sighed, pushing the invitation across the table towards him. "I just don't get it. Why would he do this? Why would he send an invitation to me?"

Kevin smiled, taking a sip of his coffee. "Ummm, just a guess but maybe because he wants you to be there?"

"That's not what I meant and you know it. That would be like me getting married and sending you an invitation to my engagement party. You're gonna try and tell me that wouldn't be weird?"

"Well, when you say it like that…." Kevin sighed. This whole situation was way too complicated.

"Come on, we lived together, we were married for God's sake. We…" Her voice trailed off as she stared across the table, her eyes resting on the photo hanging on the wall behind his head.

Kevin turned, following her gaze. "You're wondering if things would be different if he knew…"

Kelly nodded, her eyes burning with tears. "To go back now and face him…especially now when he's about to start a life without someone else…I just don't know if I can…"

"You don't know if you can keep lying to him?" Kevin walked across the room, taking her hands in his. "Maybe this was what you've been waiting for..maybe this was that sign you've been talking about for months now…the sign that the time was right to tell him."

"So what? I just waltz into town and show up at his doorstep. Do I drop the bombshell before or after I introduce myself to his fiancé?"

Kevin stared at her. "You can try and talk yourself out of this all you want, Kel, but you and I both know what you have to do here. It's the right thing and I think you know that."

* * *

"Two more yeses," Aubrey chirped, smiling as she placed checks by the names on the guest list. "We may have to look into reserving a bigger room at the Palace."

Joey stepped up behind her, bending down and wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "I'm not surprised," he smiled. "All our friends and family want to wish us well, and why wouldn't they? They can see how happy you make me."

Aubrey kissed his cheek, running her finger down the list. "We still have a few people who haven't responded yet though," she sighed. "I have people that don't RSVP. It's so tacky."

"Who are our holdouts?" Joey asked, his eyes immediately scanning the page for Kelly's name.

"Your so called best friend for one," Aubrey scoffed. "She's your best friend and yet she can't take the time to send a response card for your engagement party?"

"Hey," Joey stood up, a little surprised at how immediate the instinct still was to defend Kelly. "Kelly and I have been friends for years. She's brought me through a lot of tough times. She and I have shared a lot together. She'll be here…she wouldn't miss this."

Aubrey studied his face for a moment. "Been through a lot together, huh? Sounds like you and Kelly might be more than friends….should I be jealous?" She giggled, stepping over to him to wrap her arms around him and stopping short when she noted a serious expression on his face.

"Joey," she said, pulling back. "Is there something you need to tell me about your relationship with Kelly?"

"Well," Joey began. "Before you go and get all crazy, you need to understand that I love you and I'm marrying you, so whatever Kelly and I were to each other…that's in the past."

"So you were more than friends?" Aubrey felt the familiar sting of jealously rising in her stomach. Suddenly the thought of Kelly's presence at their party made her more than a little uncomfortable. "So what is it, Joey? Exactly how close were the two of you?"

"Actually, Kelly and I were college sweethearts," Joey began, relieved when he saw the smile spread across Aubrey's face.

"Awww, that's so sweet," Aubrey giggled. "Well, okay…I can deal with the puppy love thing." She smiled, kissing him quickly on the lips before turning and heading back to the guest list. "You had me worried there for a minute, I thought you were going to tell me the two of you were engaged or something."

Joey walked in front of her. "More like married," Joey said quietly. "Is this going to be a problem for us?"

* * *

"Aubrey," He stared into her eyes, the wide blue orbs flashed with emotion. Anger, hurt, fear—maybe a mix of all three, he wasn't sure, but the silence unnerved him. Aubrey wasn't the strong silent type. "Aubrey," he said again, "just say something. I mean, I know I should have told you, but I wasn't sure how to explain everything and I didn't want to make it sound worse than what it was and…"

"Just shut up…shut up for a minute." She felt sick. That was all supposed to be a con—a quick money making scheme, but she had come to care about Joey somewhere along the way. At some point, he'd become more than an easy mark. That was why Cutter had taken off weeks ago. He could see the change in her. He could tell her heart wasn't in the plan anymore. Her feelings were all tangled up…with Joey right in the middle of it.

He swallowed hard. She was angry and she had every right to be. "I know you're upset," he began.

"Yeah, Joey. I'm upset. I'm upset that you neglected to tell me that you'd been married before. I'm upset that you neglected to tell me that the woman you call your best friend is also your ex-wife, and I am upset that you found it appropriate to invite her to our engagement party!"

"Aubrey, you don't understand. Kelly and I….we…she's not like a normal ex-wife. It's not like that."

"No, it certainly doesn't sound like that. It sounds like it's all very civil. She's your best friend. She's your buddy, your pal….I know, let's uh move to one of those communes and she and I can be sister wives!"

"Come on, Aubrey," Joey spat, his own voice rising in frustration. "Yeah, Kelly and I are still friends. We were friends before we started dating and we stayed friends after our marriage didn't work out. It's not like we just got divorced last week. It's been years ago."

"How many years?" Aubrey started at him, blinking back tears. "How long ago…how long were you with her?"

"We were married over ten years ago, Aubrey. It's in the past. I'm telling you." He stepped closer to her, hesitating as he reached out. "A lot changes in ten years."

"And that's the last time? That's the last time you were with her? Ten years ago?"

Joey sighed. "Kelly lives in London with my brother and their son."

"Your brother?" Aubrey's eyes widened.

"Yeah, look…it's complicated. But what you need to understand is that we're all close. We see each other, we visit. That doesn't mean that there's something going on between us."

"You didn't answer my question," Aubrey said softly. "When was the last time you were with Kelly. I'm not talking about a family dinner or a soccer game! When was the last time you shared a bed with your ex-wife?"

Joey hesitated. That was the one question he was hoping she wouldn't ask.

* * *

"Are you sure you want me to come with you?" Kevin stood in the doorway, watching her as she methodically packed her bags.

"Yeah, I mean…I think, given the circumstances, it will probably be good to have someone else there. I'm going to need the help, after all."

"Alright," Kevin nodded. "You want to tell me the plan?"

Kelly sighed, sitting down on the edge of the bed as she slowly lifted an piece of clothing from the stack. "I wish to God I knew," she whispered. "The last time I saw Joey..the last time we were together, I would have never dreamed I'd be in this position….I would have never imagined that I'd be sitting here, talking to you, wondering how to tell him something like this."

Kevin took a seat on the bed beside her. "Are you afraid he's going to be angry with you," he asked, gently brushing her hair away from her face, "Because, Kel, I really don't think you have to worry about Joey holding a grudge. The man loves you…no matter who he's engaged to, no matter who he's trying to convince himself he wants to marry…he loves you."

She shook her head. "I'm not worried about him being angry. I'm worried about hurting him…again. It's the last thing I want to do and yet it's all I ever seem to do. I just keep hurting him over and over again."

* * *

"You can say it, you know?" She looked over at Kevin, who'd been silent for the last several minutes.

"Say what?" he asked cautiously, all too aware of how quickly this could turn into a full-fledged meltdown.

"You told me so." She smiled slightly as she heard him scoff at the notion. "You did, you know."

"I would never say that and you know it." Kevin reached out, pulling her closer to him as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "Was I afraid that something like this would end up happening one day? Yeah, I was. I just didn't want you to feel forced into doing something. I wanted you to be able to tell Joey when you felt it was right…not because you felt like you had to."

"I know. I know I should have told him from the beginning. It all would have been so much easier if I had just picked up the phone and called him. I don't know what I was so afraid of. I meant it's Joey…"

"Exactly," Kevin said softly, smiling as her head fell on his shoulder. "It's Joey. He's loved you since you were kids."

"You really think he'll be ok? This is his engagement party, Kev. I'm going to his engagement party." She put her hands over her face. "I couldn't have screwed this up anymore if I'd tried."

"Well, you wouldn't be you if you didn't bring the drama," he said softly, smiling as she lifted her head and glared at him playfully. "Besides, you will be bringing him a hell of a wedding present."

Kelly nodded. "Yeah," she whispered swallowing hard and closing her eyes. This flight might be the longest one of her life.

* * *

"It's a pretty simple question, Joey," Aubrey repeated, her patience waning with each passing moment. "You insist that you and Kelly ended years ago and yet when I ask you about the last time you were with her, you have guilt plastered all over your face."

She stood for a moment, waiting for a response.

His mind raced. How did he say this? How did he tell her the truth without making it sound like a betrayal. "Aubrey," he started, already feeling his throat tighten with anxiety.

"You know what, forget it," she snapped, grabbing the guest list from the desk. "I need to make some calls…let these people know that there's not gonna be any engagement party. I'm not gonna marry a guy that can't even answer a simple question."

"Aubrey, wait," he reached out, grabbing her arm gently. "I'll tell you. I'll tell you the truth."

"I have a feeling I already know it," she muttered, her teeth clenched in anger. "And I'm guessing it was a hell of a lot more recent than ten years ago."

He took a deep breath, his mind flashing back to the last night he'd seen Kelly. "It was Thanksgiving," he said quietly. "I was visiting my brother and my nephew. I didn't even know Kelly was planning to be in town."

"Right," Aubrey said, her eyes rolling in disgust. "You didn't think she might stop by to see her kid on Thanksgiving?"

"I mean it, Aubrey. I didn't know she was going to be there. Anyway, when I got there, Zane and Kevin were both sick. They had the flu and Kelly was there. It was Thanksgiving….there was this huge meal and I felt bad leaving."

"Of course you did." Aubrey sat down on the chair. "So, let me guess, you felt so bad about her crummy Thanksgiving that you took her upstairs to comfort her?"

"It wasn't like that!" he snapped, changing his tone as he heard the anger in his own voice. "We had dinner together. We talked, we had some wine…actually we had a lot of wine. I was in no condition to drive.."

"And we all know there are no cabs in London…"

"Yes, I could have called a cab and I should have called a cab, but I didn't. Ok? I didn't. I decided to stay and help out. My brother and Zane were sick. Kelly was there alone. I offered to stay and keep her company."

"I bet you did." Aubrey stood up, turning her back. "You can stop now. I've heard enough."

"Wait. Yeah, we ended up in bed together. It happened, but we both agreed that it shouldn't have happened. We both knew why it happened. It was Thanksgiving. We were both feeling sorry for ourselves. We'd had too much to drink. Neither of us was in a great place. It was just one of those things."

"Just one of those things?" she heard the near hysteria in her voice? "Are you kidding me? Spilling wine on your new sofa is one of those things. Missing an important phone call is one of those things. Sleeping with your ex-wife does not qualify as one of those things!"

"Look, I know how this sounds, but you and I weren't even together then. I didn't even know you existed."

Aubrey grew quiet. "Thanksgiving," she whispered, looking at him, her eyes questioning.

"Yeah, it was Thanksgiving…last Thanksgiving."

"You and I met the day after Thanksgiving…at the mall in that coffee shop. You met me the day after you slept with your ex-wife?"

"Aubrey, it wasn't like that. It's not like I was on the rebound or something. Kelly and I weren't back together. We just ended up together for one night…that's all."

"What was she wearing?"

"What?"

"The night you two were together….what was she wearing?" Aubrey watched as his face changed…the expressions went from disgust to confusion to anger.

"What difference does that make? Why do you care what she was wearing? It's not like this was some kind of affair. I didn't even know you then!"

"Why do I care?" She stepped closer to Joey, the anger that had once welled inside of her now gave way to hurt. "You know what Kelly was wearing a year ago, don't you?"

Joey stood silent in front of her.

"Don't you?!"

"Fine, yes…I remember what she was wearing, but I don't know what that has to do with any of this. What difference does it make what she was wearing?"

Aubrey swallowed hard. "Last night," she whispered. "What was I wearing last night?"

His mind raced. They had gone out to dinner at the Palace. She had a coat on, but she'd taken it off and handed it to the attendant. It was a dress…blue…black..no it was green—definitely green..dark green. He raised his eyes to speak, but she was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Hours had passed and she hadn't come back. His instinct was to go after her, but then he thought better of it. Giving her a chance to calm down might prove to be a better option and honestly, he could use a little time himself...time to think...time to figure all this out.

He'd never really thought about it-perhaps because he wasn't aware of it, or maybe because he didn't allow himself to think about it-about her-anymore.

Thinking back now, he remembered everything-not only what she was wearing, but the song that played softly in the background. He remembered the way her hair smelled when he passed closer to her in the kitchen. Coconut shampoo, she'd answered, when he'd asked her about the scent.

He remembered the way her dress, a red one he hadn't seen before, wrapped around her body-the way it felt beneath his fingertips as he gently tugged at the strings-the way it looked as it fell to the floor.

The memories didn't stop there. He remembered every detail-every second of the night they spent together and he remembered the way it ended. Both of them agreed it had been a bad idea, but somehow the feeling in his gut as he walked out the door that day remained in him even as he stood there this morning.

Joey stood, walking across the room and staring out the window. The woman he loved had walked out on him. The woman he was supposed to marry was gone and yet he couldn't stop thinking about the other woman...the woman he'd left behind...the woman who first had his heart, the woman who was never very far from his thoughts.

Aubrey sat at the table downstairs. It had been hours since she'd stormed out of the room and yet still Joey hadn't come looking for her. Staring at phone in front of her, the screen remained dark. He didn't even care enough to call, she thought sadly. Grasping the phone in her hand, she pressed the button. Something had to change. If she didn't do something, there would be no engagement party, there be no wedding, there would be no Joey.

She could feel him slipping away and she couldn't let that happen. Taking a breath, she placed the phone to her ear.

"Answer," she whispered. "Please answer." Her eyes widened in grateful thanks as she heard the chipper voice of Buchanan Enterprises more recent assistant.

"Evelyn, Hi. It's Aubrey. Listen, I know this is really last minute, but I need your help. It's really really important. There's been a change of plans and I need some help making some calls and getting things lined up. Any chance you're free this afternoon?" She closed her eyes tightly. This was her only hope.

"Great," she sighed, "I'll see you in ten." Standing quickly she tossed the phone back into her purse. "Sometimes," she said quietly, "You have to make things happen."

* * *

"You got it?" Kevin asked holding the elevator door and allowing Kelly to walk ahead.

"Yeah," she sighed, looking around hesitantly.

"You know, you're going to have to face him eventually," he said quietly, "It's Llanview, not London. It's not like you can avoid everyone you know here. The second we walk into this dining room, you're going to see somebody that knows you."

"I know," she sighed. "That's why I think maybe it's better if you go in first. Why don't you just go and get us some dinner and I'll go on to the room and get things unpacked. I need to get things set up anyway."

"Kel," he sighed. "Don't you think it's time to stop this now? I mean you're here...you came all this way."

"I will...I promise. Just give me tonight, ok? Let me get settled and get a good night's sleep and I'll see him tomorrow."

His face softened and she knew he couldn't resist her. "Let me," he whispered, reaching out and taking the carrier from her hands. "You go on upstairs and get the port-a-crib set up. I'll get dinner and be up in a few."

Kelly smiled. "Thanks," she whispered. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"Me either," Kevin replied sarcastically smiling as he watched the elevator close.

* * *

He walked over toward the bar, placing the carrier on the stool beside him. "You got any requests, Anna?"

"Kev?"

Kevin turned around, the familiar voice startling him. "Joey," he breathed as he saw his brother's face. "What are you doing here?"

Joey smiled, "Me? I live here, Kev. I think i should be asking you that. I didn't know you were coming into town. You didn't respond to the invite."

"Yeah," Kevin stammered, glancing uneasily over at Anna who stared up at the ceiling, completely content with her pacifier. "I uh..I'm sorry about that. I just didn't know how things were gonna go. I uh didn't know if my plans were gonna work out."

"I guess not," Joey smiled, glancing over at the Anna. "When were you gonna tell me about this?"

"Oh, she's...Uh...she's.." Kevin stood silent. The last thing he wanted to do was to complicate this further, but this wasn't his truth to tell. "Why don't we finish this upstairs?" He lifted the carrier, walking away from the bar and moving back towards the elevator.

"Don't you want to get your food first?" Joey asked.

"Later," Kevin sighed. "I'll come back. For now, let's go upstairs and finish this."

Before he could respond, Kevin was inside the elevator. Joey shook his head and stepped inside. This day was certainly not turning out the way he expected.

* * *

"Kev, you wanna tell me what's going on here?" Joey reached out, grabbing his brother's arm.

Kevin turned, looking at him. "I," he stopped, looking over his shoulder at the closed door. The key card seemed heavy in his hand. What the hell was he supposed to do now?

A small whimper from Anna was a welcome distraction. Kevin turned the carrier towards him. "Hey there," he whispered.

Joey stepped around beside him. "So, do I get to hold my niece?"

The words were like a slap in the face. He couldn't refuse him and before he knew it, Anna was content in his arms.

"She's beautiful, Kev," Joey said softly. "I wish you'd called. I would have liked to have been there."

"I know," he said softly. The irony of the statement was almost nauseating. "I wish you could have been there...more than you know."

The door behind them suddenly opened. "I thought that was your voice," Kelly chirped, stepping outside. "What did you decide on for dinner...I'm starv..." Her breath caught in her throat as she turned and followed Kevin's wide eyes.

"Joey," she whispered, clutching the doorknob for support. She glanced over at Kevin, the questions seemed to scream in her eyes.

Laying a hand on her shoulder, Kevin immediately spoke. "I ran into Joey down at the bar while I was getting ready to order. He walked right up behind me. I never even saw him coming," he smiled, forcing a laugh.

Kelly swallowed hard, forcing breath into her lungs once again. She couldn't fall apart not now, not even as Joey softly rocked her daughter back and forth.

"Yeah," Joey spoke. "I surprised him and he surprised me too." He let out of soft laugh, glancing down at the tiny baby girl in his arms. "He's still got some explaining to do about this one."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that," Kevin began, his eyes not leaving Kelly. He could see the tears beginning to well in her eyes and he knew she was on the verge of falling apart. As much as he wanted his brother to know the truth, he didn't want Kelly to hurt in the process.

"Sorry isn't going to cut it bro, I might settle for a role as the godfather though," he smiled down at her. "That is if her mother approves...Speaking of...do I know her mother."

"Ok, just stop," the words seemed to fall from her mouth before she could stop them.

Both men turned their attention to her immediately.

"Stop what, Kel?" Joey's tone was mixed with an equal part confusion and concern.

"This..all of this...It all has to stop. I have to tell you the truth. You have to know the truth."

Kevin reached out, swiping the card. "Why don't we go inside?" he said softly, laying his hand on her back.

"That's a good idea," she whispered, following Kevin inside.

"Alright Kel, what's going on here?" Joey looked at her. The eyes that he knew so well were filled with regret, hurt, fear, and so many other emotions that he couldn't quite pinpoint.

"Let me take her," she whispered, holding out her arms toward Anna. "Hi baby," she whispered, placing her in the port-a-crib and gently kissing her forehead.

Joey was silent for a moment. "She's yours," he said finally. "Anna's your daughter."

"Yes," her voice broke, aware that this was the least of the truths to be revealed tonight

"You and Kevin...you..." Looking toward his brother, he searched his face for some admission.

"No...No," Kelly whispered. "She's not Kevin's daughter." She took another breath, placing her hands on the side of the crib as she started down at her daughter. "Joey," she managed, her voice shaking to the point that speaking was almost impossible. "This is your baby. She's your little girl."

* * *

His heart was beating so loud inside his head that he could barely hear her soft, shaky voice as she said his name.

"Joey," she whispered, reaching out to touch his arm. She'd spent countless hours rehearsing the ways she would tell him and many more trying to prepare herself for his reaction. She'd expected him to be upset. She'd planned for tears. Joey had never been one to hide his emotions. She'd planned for anger. If she was in his situation, she reasoned, she would be angry too, but she hadn't planned for this—this silence. This overwhelming silence.

"I'm just going to give you two some…." Kevin didn't bother to finish his sentence as he slipped out of the room. The last thing the two of them needed was his presence to complicate things.

"Please say something," she whispered again, her own mind now beginning to conjure up nightmare scenarios in which he stormed from the room refusing to speak to her ever again.

He forced himself to look at her, taking his eyes off the tiny baby girl for the first time. Shaking his head, he struggled for words. His thoughts were a jumbled mess. He didn't know what to say. He didn't know what he felt.

"Why?" he finally managed, his voice hoarse with emotion.

"Why?" Kelly repeated, the question hanging in the air. "Why what?"

His eyes flashed up at her. "Why what?!" His voice was louder now and shaky as hot tears began to well up in his eyes. "Why didn't you tell me when you found out? Why didn't you tell me when she was born? Why are you here? Why the hell did you come to my engagement party?"

The words hit her like a slap in the face. "I'll go," she said softly. "We can go…We'll figure this out later. You're right…it was wrong of me to come here and I should let you have your night and…"

His hands gripped her arm tightly as she turned away. "I don't want you to go." The steel stare of his eyes softened as she looked at him and he loosened the grip on her arm, gesturing over to the small sofa in the corner of the room.

"Please," he whispered. "Don't go."

* * *

"Evelyn, you are a genius..better than that," Aubrey grinned, looking over the papers that were now spread out on the table in front of her. "I'm going to get you a raise!" she squealed.

"It was no problem," the young assistant replied dutifully. "Do you need me to do anything else?"

"Just finish making those calls," Aubrey smiled. "I don't want anybody to be confused about this party tomorrow night."

"Right," Evelyn nodded, grabbing her bag as she headed out.

Aubrey leaned back in her chair as she heard the door close. "By this time tomorrow night, I'll be Mrs. Joseph Buchanan."

* * *

A small burst of air escaped her lips as she reached for the tissue he held out to her. "I can't believe you're being so nice to me," she whispered, looking up at him as he took a seat next to her.

Joey shook his head as he sat a glass of water down in front of her and ran his hand over the nape of his neck. He felt sick to his stomach and his mind was still swimming with questions, but somehow taking care of Kelly seemed to be the most natural thing to do. It was what he always did—it was what felt right.

"What did you think I was going to do?" He stared at her for a long moment, his eyes searching her face for some indication of what she was thinking.

"I don't know," she whispered, averting her eyes. "Not this. I should be the one trying to explain myself to you and here you are—taking care of me." She looked up at him again, her eyes blinking back tears. "Aren't you angry with me?"

Joey sighed, his gaze drifting back over to the sleeping bundle in the port a crib. "Angry?" He stood up, walking over to stand over the baby girl, smiling as he watched the rise and fall of her chest.

"I'm not angry with you," he said softly, spreading the blanket over the little girl, smiling as she wiggled slightly. "I just don't understand. I don't know why you didn't tell me."

"I always meant to, Joey. I never wanted it to go this long. I wanted to call you when I found out, but I knew how difficult things had been for me… you know before…. and I didn't want to make things complicated and then…." She swallowed hard, remembering those first few months, the fear that had become a daily part of her life. Every strange sensation, every twinge had been a reason to panic, a sure sign that things were going terribly wrong.

If it hadn't been for Kevin, she wasn't certain she would have survived the pregnancy—at least not with any semblance of her sanity.

"I could have been there for you. I would have been there for you." His eyes met hers again, the weight of his gaze only adding to her guilt. "I would have done anything for you, Kel. I still would? Don't you know that."

She nodded sadly. "Of course I do. That's the point. I didn't want it to be like that. I didn't want you to feel like you had to do anything….like you were obligated to be somewhere or with someone that maybe you didn't really want to be with. Babies don't fix things…I know that…I've tried that. I didn't want you to think I was trying to push you or trap you or…"

Looking up at him, she stopped, noting the look on his face.

"I wouldn't have thought that about you…not about us…not about this." He paused a moment, letting his thoughts settle. "Kevin," he said quietly, "Kevin knew about this…the whole time, he knew?"

Kelly nodded. "I had to tell someone," she said quietly. "Kevin was there and he knew the situation. He kept me sane you know. He was great." She looked up at him. "For what it's worth, he wanted to tell you. He tried to convince me to tell you and I wanted to…I really did." She felt the tears begin to fall as she took a shaky breath.

All the emotions she'd been holding in—All the fear, all the stress, all the worry…it all came flooding out in that moment and then suddenly his arms were around her.

The warmth of his embrace comforted her and within moments her breathing slowed and the sobbing stopped.

"You okay?" Joey asked quietly, still holding her close to his chest.

She nodded, stepping back and wiping her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "For all of this…for not telling you about Anna…for showing up here like this…"

"Anna?" he said quietly, "From the movie?"

"Yeah," she whispered, "I think it suits her."

Joey smiled, "Yeah, it does." A small whimper from the corner of the room drew his attention.

"She's probably hungry," Kelly said softly. "I should feed her."

"Yeah, okay…I guess I should go. Aubrey's going to be wondering where I am…." The statement hung in the air as the gravity of his words hit them both.

"What are you going to do?" Kelly said quietly. She picked up Anna, cradling her in her arms and standing in front of him. "You know what," she stammered, "Never mind. Forget I asked…that's none of my business."

"No, Kelly…I…" He stopped, unable to take his eyes off the two of them. For so many years of his life he'd dreamed of the sight he saw in front of him—Kelly standing in front of him, holding his child. It was what he had dreamed of night after night and now here she was, standing here right in front of him, holding his baby girl.

"I just…I don't really know what to do. I just know I have to talk to Aubrey. I have to tell her about this. I have to tell her about…her," he whispered, gesturing to the baby.

Kelly nodded. "Right," she said softly, settling into the chair in the corner. "Just so you know…I'm not going to say or do anything. Whatever happens from here on out…it's your call. You just tell me what you want. You can be as involved as you want or…" She left the question hanging in the air, unable to consider the idea of him walking away now.

He stepped over to stand in front of her. "I want to be involved. I want to be a father to this baby. I want to make up for all the time I lost…but I just…I have to go now…I have to make this right…" He knelt down beside the chair, meeting her gaze. "Please tell me you understand that."

"Of course I do," she said softly.

He leaned down, kissing Anna's forehead and running his hand across her tiny arm. "I'll call you…really soon," he whispered as he stood.

Kelly nodded remaining silent as she watched him leave the room.


End file.
